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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22985530">Save The Best for Last</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheRookBook/pseuds/TheRookBook'>TheRookBook</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Rookie (TV 2018)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M, First Kiss, Tucy, Weddings, chenford</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-03-02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-03-02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 06:40:57</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Not Rated</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,680</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22985530</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheRookBook/pseuds/TheRookBook</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>All they needed was a little extra motivation.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Tim Bradford &amp; Lucy Chen, Tim Bradford/Lucy Chen</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>222</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Save The Best for Last</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Inspired by thechenfordship on Tumblr. Not going to lie, I thought about this all day.</p><p>Song is : I Don’t Dance by Lee Brice</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Everyone in the venue cheered when the officiant finally declared that Angela Lopez was now Mrs. Evers. It took months to plan this wedding, but in reality, between work and planning, time flew. There was hardly time for any planning at all, but the venue turned out immaculate.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lucy sat beside Jackson and Sterling with John beside on the other side with Grace. She was in the middle of a couple sandwich. To say it was awkward would be an understatement. It didn’t help either that every so often she would catch her favorite TO’s eyes on her. Tim Bradford sat a couple of rows in front of the group of rookies with Harper on the other side of the room. His angle was just perfect that he could casually glimpse at Lucy without making it obvious.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lucy would be lying if she denied taking glances at Tim too. He was an attractive man and the dark grey suit he was wearing did not hurt. It would defiantly be a mental picture that she saved for later.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Tim could not make himself stop looking at his rookie. She was his rookie for heaven’s sake. There was no way that they could be together, but damn if she didn’t look good in that soft yellow dress with her hair curled, her make-up done just perfectly, even though she looked good without it too – no stop it, he thought to himself. But he couldn’t help but peek back at her every so often.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That’s why he was sitting at a table in the reception hall by himself nursing a beer in his left hand. He watched Lucy as she danced to songs ranging from ‘the cupid shuffle’ to ‘I got a feeling’. He watched as she moved effortlessly across the dancefloor and how her dress hugged her just right. Her smile lit up the room.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lucy had asked him to dance earlier, but he flat out refused. “I don’t dance,” he told her over and over as she persisted.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You danced at your wedding, didn’t you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Different set of circumstances, Chen.” Tim Bradford did not do weddings. He was only here to support Lopez or at least that's what he told himself. He watched as she walked away slightly disappointed but saw how quick she was to hide it when she and Jackson started tearing up the dancefloor. John had tried to keep up with his younger counterparts but quickly bowed out.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Alright, ladies and gentlemen. Time to grab your loved ones. We’re going to slow things down for the last song of the evening,” the DJ said into the mic once the song ended.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m going to go find Sterling. You good,” Jackson asked as he started to walk away from Lucy.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah…Yeah. Totally. Go ahead. I need to get a drink anyway,” she smiled gesturing over her shoulder towards the refreshment area.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lucy stands there watching as the couples form on the dancefloor. Nolan and Grace. Angela and Wesley. Jackson and Sterling. She wondered if she could ever get to experience something like that. Every guy she dated was either trying to get money to fund a screenplay or ran away whenever she mentioned she was a cop. Then there was that one that tried to kill her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The music was just starting when she turned to walk away from the floor when she ran smack into someone. “Oh sorry. Tim,” she said surprised. “What are you doing?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They always say you save the best for last,” he says putting his hand out for her to take.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You don’t…You don’t have to do that,” she says nervously. Still, he stands here with his hand out waiting for her to take it. He had the same look on his face that he has out in the field when he wants her to do something with his eyebrows raised. Lucy takes his hand just as the words of the song start to filter through the speakers and Tim pulls her close to him as they start to sway to the music.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I'll never settle down,</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>That's what I always thought</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Yeah, I was that kind of man,</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Just ask anyone</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>They swayed easily to the music. Their rhythm never faltering.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I don't dance, but here I am</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Spinning you around and around in circles</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>It ain't my style, but I don't care</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I'd do anything with you anywhere</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Yes, you got me in the palm of your hand</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>'Cause, I don't dance</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Tim twirled Lucy away from him only to pull her back in. They locked eyes for a moment before Tim forced himself to look away. Lucy’s face turning bright pink as embarrassment crept to the surface.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Love's never come my way,</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I've never been this far</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>'Cause you took these two left feet</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>And waltzed away with my heart</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>He tries to think when he started to fall for his rookie. Was it that night she talked him out of trying to save Isabel because she knew it would destroy him after their short time together? Or was it that time she convinced him to go paintballing with her to relieve some pent-up anxiety? Maybe it was when he was afraid, she was going to be killed at the hands of a serial killer and he pulled her out of the barrel. Honestly, he could think of hundreds of different reasons why she had weaseled through the gate he had around his heart.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>No, I don't dance, but here I am</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Spinning you around and around in circles</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>It ain't my style, but I don't care</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I'd do anything with you anywhere</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Yes, you got me in the palm of your hand, girl</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>'Cause, I don't dance</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>No, I don't dance</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>They rest their foreheads against each other’s as they continue to sway to the music.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I don't dance, but here I am</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Spinning you around and around in circles</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>It ain't my style, but I don't care</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Well I'd do anything with you anywhere</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Tim twirls her one last time watching as her dark brown curls bounced as she spun. Everything about this felt so right. Her hand in his. Her body pressed close against his. It almost seemed meant to be.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I don't dance, but here I am</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Spinning you around and around in circles</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>It ain't my style, but I don't care</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I'd do anything with you anywhere</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Yeah, you got me in the palm of your hand, girl</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>'Cause, I don't dance</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>No, ooh</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Tim pulls her back to him and held her close to him until the song comes to an end. Her head rested on his shoulder. Everything about it felt so right. When the song ends, they don’t break up right away. Partially because of Tim’s arms wrapped tight around her and Lucy being perfectly content on where she’s currently at.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She looks up to see Tim already looking down at her. That’s when the embarrassment of the situation hits her like a ton of bricks. “I’m…I’m sorry,” she apologizes softly breaking away from him and hastily walking towards the exit.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He tried to say something but everytime he opened his mouth the words didn’t come out.   He wants so bad to make his legs move to stop her, but it’s like he’s planted in concrete. His eyes follow her out the door until she’s out of his sight.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are you just going to stand there or are you going to go after her,” Angela said walking up to him. She had caught a glimpse of the pair dancing and she knew it would happen eventually.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What are you talking about,” he asks in his typical Bradford voice trying to downplay what just happened with his rookie.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Angela just gives him a look. They had worked together for a long time and developed a relationship that was almost brother-sister like.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah. I think I am,” he says as he starts walking across the room just as quickly as Lucy left.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Angela smiled as she watched him leave. He was going to catch so much hell for this once she got back from her honeymoon and she was looking forward to it. Who would have thought that Tim Bradford of all people would fall for his rookie?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Tim looked down a couple of hallways quickly until he found Lucy leaned up against a wall. “Lucy,” he calls walking up to her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Tim,” she says surprised that he came after her. It was probably to tell her that if she told anyone then she’d run behind the shop for two weeks between calls or she would have to run the academy obstacle course in a bomb suit over and over and over again until he was satisfied. “That shouldn’t have happened,” she says standing tall before her supervisor. “I won’t tell anyone, so you don’t have to worry your tough cop persona will remain intact.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shut up,” he says causing her eyes to snap up at him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Excuse me?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He reached out for her and pulled her to him once again. They looked at each other in the eyes for a minute both looking for what they hoped was there. “I said shut up,” he said softly before pressing his lips to hers. He was hesitant at first until she started to move her lips against his. Her arms found their way around his neck as the two stood in the middle of the hallway for anyone that passed by to see.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A cheer erupted from down the hallway causing the pair to break apart and look back. “I won the bet,” Angela cheers, Wesley beside her with his arm wrapped around his bride.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Tim shakes his head looking back at Lucy who is red with embarrassment. He leaned down and captured her lips one more time before pulling back. He saw Lucy’s nervous smile and smiled widely. Tim put his hand out for her to take. This time she didn’t protest. The two walked hand and hand back into the reception.</span>
</p><p> </p>
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